Tory MPs: HS2 route plunges through rural Britain

Conservative MPs raised a host of concerns about the HS2 rail extension, after Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin outlined the plans in the House of Commons.

"This route plunges through rural Britain, rural Staffordshire, and should use existing transport corridors. It blights the environment, homes and lives," said Michael Fabricant MP, the member for Lichfield in Staffordshire.

Other MPs highlighted the impact the route may cause to large-scale infrastructure projects in the areas affected, as well as the uncertainty facing homeowners on the issue of compensation if their houses have to be demolished to make way for the line.

The 225mph trains will link London with Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds by 2033.

Simon Jenkins, the chairman of the National Trust, has said the "really stupid line" would only benefit London and would “turn the rest of the country into a suburb of the capital”.